How Changes To Facebook Page “Likes” Will Affect Social Media Marketing

Facebook is now opening up Pages to allow comments from all users – even without a user Liking the page. The majority of brand managers and Internet marketing folks may feel a bit uneasy about the change, as measurement has generally been about the total number, or improvement, of Page Likes. Likes have been a primary benchmark to determine how a Facebook Page was doing.

Facebook Pages are now open to conversion. Through news feed exposure, more people will visit Pages, meaning many more will comment on it. This is clearly a very positive contribution to brand awareness, making a brand page a valuable asset and a real forum where brands can communicate directly with clients or potential clients.

Sure, a user can visit the page, comment, and never be heard from again. But when breaking down the added exposure and conversion by opening doors to all users, the real power of social media can be realized, the proper variables can be measured. Likes as a whole have held back proper brand interaction and conversion – Pages have now evolved into something much more useful and relevant. They can be helpful.

When breaking it down, if a social media manager is aiming to measure Facebook’s Page impact solely through Likes, they’re missing the whole point of social media. We need to be measuring conversions. How does Facebook impact business goals? How is conversation relevant? These are important things to know. These are pieces to the bigger strategic puzzle.

It’s been reported that a little over 41% of people who Liked a brand page end up unliking the page immediately after a marketing or advertising campaign ends. Ask yourself why. There have certainly been a ton of marketing campaigns run on Facebook because they are considered to be social, and everyone is on Facebook, so it seems to make sense. However, the numbers by themselves are meaningless. Why and how are users interacting?

Using Facebook to create conversion, or engaging with a brand is about purpose. Posting quality content, creating an effective social voice, and adding creativity to a Page are all positive ways to improve a brand’s image, placing the focus on a brand’s engagement style.

Commenting clearly requires some understanding, some thought and engagement. By measuring Likes you’re only looking at one aspect of potential reach measurement. Ask yourself this question: how is social media affecting the bottom line of a brand?